The Great Gatsby (opera)

Last updated

The Great Gatsby is a 1999 opera in two acts written by American composer John Harbison. The libretto, also by Harbison, was adapted from the 1925 novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Additional popular song lyrics were by Murray Horwitz. The opera was commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera in honor of music director James Levine's 25th anniversary with the company.

Contents

Performance history

The Great Gatsby had its premiere performance on December 20, 1999. Conducted by Levine, the cast included Jerry Hadley, Dawn Upshaw and Lorraine Hunt Lieberson. The stage production was by Mark Lamos. The opera has been performed at the Met twelve times in two seasons. In 2000 it was produced at Lyric Opera of Chicago. The opera has received mixed reviews, some describing it as "undramatic and dull." [1] It was also performed in the summer of 2012 at the Aspen Music Festival and School. It was performed at Seagle Festival in Schroon Lake, NY in the summer of 2018.

The first European performance was on 6 December 2015 at the Semperoper in Dresden conducted by Wayne Marshall.

Roles

RoleVoice typePremiere Cast, December 20, 1999
(Conductor: James Levine)
European Premiere, December 6, 2015
(Conductor: Wayne Marshall)
Jay Gatsby, a wealthy but mysterious young man tenor Jerry Hadley Peter Lodahl
Daisy Buchanan, a young socialite soprano Dawn Upshaw Maria Bengtsson
Tom Buchanan, Daisy's husband, formerly an athletetenorMark W. BakerRaymond Very
Nick Carraway, Daisy's cousin, a stockbroker baritone Dwayne Croft John Chest
Jordan Baker, Daisy's friend, a golfer mezzo-soprano Susan Graham Christina Bock
George Wilson, garage mechanicbass Richard Paul Fink Lester Lynch
Myrtle Wilson, George's wifemezzo-soprano Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Angel Blue
Radio/Band Singertenor Matthew Polenzani Aaron Pegram
Tango Singermezzo-sopranoJennifer DudleyJelena Kordić
Meyer Wolfshiem, a businessman bass-baritone William PowersMatthias Henneberg
Henry Gatz, Jay's fatherbaritone Frederick Burchinal Tilmann Rönnebeck
MinisterbassLeRoy Lehr

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renée Fleming</span> American soprano

Renée Lynn Fleming is an American soprano, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nominated for 17 Grammy Awards and has won four times. Other notable awards have included the Chevalier de la Légion d'Honneur from the French government, Germany's Cross of the Order of Merit, Sweden's Polar Music Prize and honorary membership in England's Royal Academy of Music. Unusual among artists whose careers began in opera, Fleming has achieved name recognition beyond the classical music world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Adès</span> British composer, pianist and conductor

Thomas Joseph Edmund Adès is a British composer, pianist and conductor. Five compositions by Adès received votes in the 2017 Classic Voice poll of the greatest works of art music since 2000: The Tempest (2004), Violin Concerto (2005), Tevot (2007), In Seven Days (2008), and Polaris (2010).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathleen Battle</span> American operatic soprano (born 1948)

Kathleen Deanna Battle is an American operatic soprano known for her distinctive vocal range and tone. Born in Portsmouth, Ohio, Battle initially became known for her work within the concert repertoire through performances with major orchestras during the early and mid-1970s. She made her opera debut in 1975. Battle expanded her repertoire into lyric soprano and coloratura soprano roles during the 1980s and early 1990s, until her eventual dismissal from the Metropolitan Opera in 1994. She later has focused on recording and the concert stage. After a 22-year absence from the Met, Battle performed a concert of spirituals at the Metropolitan Opera House in November 2016.

John Harris Harbison is an American composer, known for his symphonies, operas, and large choral works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bryn Terfel</span> Welsh bass-baritone singer

Sir Bryn Terfel Jones, is a Welsh bass-baritone opera and concert singer. Terfel was initially associated with the roles of Mozart, particularly Figaro, Leporello and Don Giovanni, but has subsequently shifted his attention to heavier roles, especially those by Puccini and Wagner.

Dawn Upshaw is an American soprano. She is the recipient of several Grammy Awards and has released a number of Edison Award-winning discs; she performs both opera and art song, and her repertoire spans Baroque to contemporary. Many composers, including Henri Dutilleux, Osvaldo Golijov, John Harbison, Esa-Pekka Salonen, John Adams, and Kaija Saariaho, have written for her. In 2007, she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Hampson</span> American opera singer

Thomas Walter Hampson is an American lyric baritone, a classical singer who has appeared world-wide in major opera houses and concert halls and made over 170 musical recordings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hildegard Behrens</span> German operatic soprano

Hildegard Behrens was a German operatic soprano with a wide repertoire including Wagner, Weber, Mozart, Richard Strauss, and Alban Berg roles. She performed at major opera houses around the world, and received several Grammy Awards for performances with the Metropolitan Opera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerry Hadley</span> American operatic tenor (1952–2007)

Jerry Hadley was an American operatic tenor. He received three Grammy awards for his vocal performances in the recordings of Jenůfa, Susannah, and Candide. Hadley was a leading American tenor for nearly two decades. He was mentored by soprano Joan Sutherland and her husband, conductor Richard Bonynge. Leonard Bernstein chose Hadley for his 1989 recording of Candide on Deutsche Grammophon. Aside from singing opera and operetta, Hadley also sang on Broadway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Levine</span> American conductor and pianist (1943–2021)

James Lawrence Levine was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March 12, 2018, over sexual misconduct allegations, which he denied.

Alicia Berneche is an American lyric coloratura soprano who has sung leading roles in operas throughout the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joyce DiDonato</span> American mezzo-soprano

Joyce DiDonato is an American lyric-coloratura mezzo-soprano. She is notable for her interpretations of operas and concert works in the 19th-century romantic era in addition to works by Handel and Mozart.

Dwayne Croft is an American baritone who has sung in more than 500 performances in 38 roles at the Metropolitan Opera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kate Lindsey</span> American opera singer

Kate Lindsey is a mezzo-soprano opera singer from the United States. She is married to the documentary filmmaker Olly Lambert.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle DeYoung</span> American opera singer

Michelle DeYoung is an American classical vocalist who has an active international career performing in operas and concerts.

Patrick Summers is an American conductor best known for his work with Houston Grand Opera (HGO), where he has been the artistic and music director since 2011, and with San Francisco Opera, where he served as principal guest conductor, 1999–2016.

Raymond Hughes is an American conductor and choral director.

The Symphony No. 4 is an orchestral composition by the American composer John Harbison. The work was commissioned by the Seattle Symphony with contributions from the philanthropists Richard and Constance Albrecht. It was given its world premiere in Seattle on June 17, 2004 by the Seattle Symphony under the direction of Gerard Schwarz.

The Requiem is a composition for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor, baritone, chorus, and orchestra by the American composer John Harbison. Composed over a period of seventeen years, the complete work was finished in 2002 on a commission from the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Its world premiere was given by the soprano Christine Brewer, mezzo-soprano Margaret Lattimore, tenor Paul Groves, baritone Jonathan Lemalu the Tanglewood Festival Chorus, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Bernard Haitink on March 6, 2003.

Lester Lynch is an American operatic baritone.

References

  1. Croan, Robert. "Harbison's Great Gatsby Fails to Engage; Tristan soars" . Retrieved 4 July 2012.